Track-cleaner for street-railways



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G. A. PARMENTER & PEIRCE. TRACK CLEANER FOR STREET RAILWAYS.

No. 594,552. Patented Nov. 30, 1.897.

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' G. A. PARMENTER & S. H., PEIRGE.

TRACK CLEANER FOR STREET RAILWAYS; No. 594,552.

Patented Nov. 30,1897.

680 55%nfi eir by I d/ NrrED STATES ATENT FFICE.

GEORGE A. PARMENTER AND STEPHEN H. PEIRCE, OF CAMBRIDGE, MASSACHUSETTS.

TRACK-CLEAN ER FOR STRE-ET-RAI LWAYS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Fatent No. 594,552, dated November 30, 1897.

Application filed October 9, 1897. Serial No. 654,659. (No model.)

drawings, is a specification.

Our invention relates to track-cleaners for street-railway cars; audit consists in certain novel features of construction, arrangement,

and combination of parts,which will be readily understood by reference to the description of the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this application, and to the claims hereto appended and in which our invention is clearly pointed out.

Figure 1 of the drawings is a sectional elevation of a portion of one end of a street-car with our invention applied thereto. Fig. 2 is -a plan of the same with the floor of the car removed. Fig. 3 is a rear elevation of one of the track-scrapers and its carrier drawn to an enlarged scale. Fig. 4 is a side elevation of the same. Fig. 5 is a sectional elevation, the cutting plane being on line m :0 in Fig. 3. Figs. 6 and 7 are respectively an elevation and a transverse section of the guideway-stand and catch for the lifting-rod; and Figs. 8 and 9 are two elevations of a modified form of link connection, to be explained.

In the drawings, A is the truck-frame, B the car-wheels, (J the sills of the car-body, D the dasher, and E the pilot-board, all of which may be of any well-known construction.

The pilot-board E has firmly secured to'its inner vertical face above each track-rail a stand F, the upper end of which is provided with the two rearwardly-projecting ears or arms F, through the rear ends of which is inserted the bolt or rod 0. to form the rearward boundary of the slot or opening between said ears or arms, as shown in Fig. 5. The stand F also has pivotedthereto the slotted arm G, provided with the shoulder b to receive the end of the spring H, the tension of which tends to move the rear end of said slotted arm downward, and said arm G is also provided with the shoulder c to abut against said stand F and thus limit the downward movement'of the rear end of said arm G, as shown in Fig. 5.

I is a V-shaped scraper or plowshare, preferably of sheet-steel, firmly secured to the lower'end of the vertical or nearly-vertical bar J, which extends through the slot in the arm G and between the ears F of the stand F, as shown in Fig. 3.

The bar J has its upper end curved toward the end of the car and has formed in its inner or rear edge a series of transverse serrations or teeth (I, which, when pressure is applied to the plowshare. I, engage with the correspondingly-shaped teeth 6 in the inner face of the bar G, which forms the rear or inner end of the" slot or opening through the arm G, as shown in Figs. 3 and 5. The bar J also has set in one side thereof, preferably between the ears F and the arm G, a stud f to receive one end of a link connection f between the bar J and the arm g, firmly secured upon the rocker-shaft K, mounted in bearings in the stands h h, bolted to the outer vertical face of the pilot-board E and projecting upward therefrom. The shaft K also has firmly secured thereon the upwardly-projecting arm 1;, to the upper end of which is connected one end of the rod j, the other end of which is connected to one end of the chain is, which, after passing partially around the sheave Z, mounted in a stand secured to the under side of the sill of the platform, has its other end secured to the lower'end of the lifting-rod m, the upper end of which is provided with a handle 72, by lifting which the scraper or plowshare may be raised out of action whenever it is not desired in operation.

The link connection between the bar J and the arm 9 may consist of a plurality of chainlinks f, as shown in Fig. 1, or of a single slotted link, as shown in Figs. 8 and 9, or any other form of connection may be used that will permit the bar J and plowshare I to be lifted by a movement of the rocker-shaft K about its axis in the direction indicated by the arrow in Fig. 1, and also permit said bar and plowshare to be lifted independently of any movement of said rocker-shaft when said plowshare comes in contact with a pavingstone or other obstruction.

L is a casing surrounding the upper portion of the lifting-rod m and provided with the vertical slot m for the passage of the handle 12, said slot being expanded at its upper end to form the shoulder or catch m upon which the handle a rests when the bar J and the plowshare I are raised to throw them out of operation.

If the scraper or plowshare I should come in contact with a paving-stone that projects above the general level, the lower end of the bar J will be moved toward the rear till the teeth 01 engage the teeth 6 on the contiguous side of the bar G, when said bar and scraper will be moved upward, so as to pass over the obstruction, moving the rear end of the arm Gupward against the tension of the spring II, and as soon as the obstruction is passed the bar J and its scraper will drop again into contact with the rail by the force of gravity assisted by the tension of the spring II.

The rear end of the arm G is normally located at a lower level than the axis of its pivot, and as a consequence when the teeth (Z on the bar J engage the teeth e in the bar G of the arm G and the scraper meets an obstruction in the shape of a paving-stone that is raised slightly above the general level the scraper is moved obliquely upward and toward the rear till it will pass over the obstruction.

What we claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States, is

1. In a track-cleaner for street-cars the combination with the truck-frame of the car, of a stand carried by said frame and provided with a guideway-slot in its upper portion; a radius-arm pivoted at one end to said stand and provided with a vertical slot through the same; a scraper or plowshare to contact with the track-rail and provided with or secured to a shank or bar projecting upward through the slots in said radius-arm and stand and having its upper end portion curved toward the end of the car; a series of teeth formed on the rear edge of said scraper-bar; a second series of teeth formed in the rear end of the slot through said radius-arm adapted to engage said first scries of teeth; and means carried by said truck-fra1ne for raising said scraper when not required for use.

2. In a track-cleaner for street-cars the combination with the truck-frame of the car and its pilot-board, of the stand I F; the arm G pivoted to said stand, and provided with the shoulders Z) and c and having a vertical slot through the same provided in its rear end with the teeth 6; the scraper I; the scraper-carrying bar J having a curved upper portion and provided in its rear edge with the teeth (Z; the spring II engaging the shoulder 1) of the arm G; the rocker shaft K mounted in bearings in the stands h secured to said pilot-board; the arms 9 and i firmly secured on said shaft; a slotted link connection between said barJ and arm g; and means for partially rotating said shaft K to raise said scraper.

In a track-cleaner for street-ears the combination with the truck-frame of the ear and its pilot-board of the stand F F; the arm G provided with the shoulders Z) and c and. having a vertical slot through the same provided in its rear end with the teeth 0; the scraper I; the scraper-bar J provided with the teeth d; the spring II; the stands h h; the rocker-shaft K; the arms 9 and tall carried by the pilot-board of the truck-frame; the rodsj and m, the chain k; the sheave l; the handle at; and the casing L provided with the slot m and the shoulder or catch m all constructed, arranged, and operating substantially as and for the purposes described.

In testimony whereof we have signed our names to this specification, in the presence of two subscribing witnesses, on this 8th day of October, A. D. 1897.

GEORGE A. PARHENTER. STEPHEN II. IEIRCE. iVitnesses:

N. O. LOMBARD, IVILLIAM E. DAVIS. 

